Loose Megalodones are known for science since the 1840s thanks to their enormous triangular teeth found fossilized. The name “Megalodon” It means “big tooth” in ancient Greek.
And this is through of which it has been proven that some amounted to more than 16 centimeters long. For comparison, the teeth of the large white shark reach a maximum of 7.5 centimeters.
To know How great were megalodones, it would be necessary to have a complete skeletonBut because it is a kind of cartilage fishing, it lacks hard bones and the cartilage is not easy to fossilize, because it usually falls apart over time.
This giant It is assumed that it was one of that at the top of the oceanic food chainSo the white sharks that predators miss today would be an integral part of their diet.
Megalodon: the biggest predator fish in history
For millions of years, the Megalodon dominated the oceans As the biggest predator fish in the history of the earth. With an estimated length of up to 24 meters and teeth with the size of one hand, this sea colosus was considered a supercarnivore specialized in hunting hunting on whales. A new study published in the magazine Letters of the earth and planetary science Change that perception: the Otodus Megalodon It not only fed with large marine mammals, but had a wider and more diverse diet.
“When I had a chance, whales hunted,” says Jeremy McCormack, researcher at the Geosciences Department of the Goethe University of Frankfurt (Germany) and the main author of the study. “But The evidence suggests that their diet was much more varied than«.
To arrive at this conclusion, an international team of scientists from Germany, France, Austria and the US. the share of zinkisotopes analyzed In fossil teeth of Megalodon, A recent technique that makes it possible to accurately rebuild the trophic position of extinct animals. Zinc is absorbed into the body via the diet and the isotopic composition changes depending on the type of food consumed. The higher in the food chain an animal is, Minor is the share of heavy isotope (Zinc-66) in their tissues.
Comparing the teeth of Megalodon And from his nearby family member Otodus Chubutensis With those of other extinct and current shark species, the researchers determined that these marine giants occupy the cusp of the trophic chain, but With a certain ecological flexibility.
Fossil remains in the Alps
«We study fossil teeth of deposits in Sigmaringen and Passau, in Germany, that 18 million years ago they were part of a shallow mouth with the Alps«, McCormack details. “There were different types of sharks and fish there, from which they fed with molluscs in the seabed to the great predators, such as Otodus Megalodon“.
The analysis was allowed to rebuild a model of the marine network in that region: there were fish at the base such as the Sargos, who consumed molluscs and shellfish; They were followed sear such as primitive carcharinos and cetaceans; Above, average sharks such as bulls; And at the top, large shark species such as Aralosalayus Cuspidatus and that of the genre Otodus.
The isotopic signals of the Megalodon They show that too Occasionally fed with dams at lower levels. “He Megalodon It was versatile enough to consume both marine mammals and large fish, depending on what was available, “says the scientist. The comparison between fossils of different regions also reveals differences in the diet, which indicate geographical and temporal variations in the ecosystem.
Change the history of Megalodon
For McCormack, this flexibility has important implications: «Our Research draws a megalodon portrait as an ecological generalist. The idea that it is only aimed at hunt for the search for whales must be assessed ».
The technology based on zinciotopes, still starting, has been very effective in this work and has yielded coherent results Not just for sharks and extinct whalesBut also for herbivore prehistoric rhinos and current sharks. “The determination of the isotopic proportions of zinc in teeth is confirmed as a Valuable Aid for Reconstructions Paleoecological, “says McCormack.
«The study offers us one New perspective on how marine communities have changed during the geological time«, Kenshu Shimada, paleobiologist adds to the Depaul University of Chicago and Co -Author of Work. “And it also reminds us that even the SuperDors are not safe against extinction.”
Previous studies, including some led by McCormack itself, had already pointed out that the appearance of the Great modern white shark can contribute to the decline from the Megalodon This new research brings a piece into the puzzle about how it lived and why one of the most formidable predators has disappeared in natural history.